Here's the piece on Ky. It's great and also honoring Ky last night as best dressed at the Banquet. Long but worth reading fellas.

"My seats are on the baseline of the west side of the stadium. From here I have spent 4 years watching Ky Madden careen sideways towards opposing defenders as he pushes the ball up the court – looking like a middle aged man with an inner ear condition as he tries to create advantage by creating contact.

Sometimes defenders run clumsily out of the way, like drivers on an interstate avoiding the drunk guy backing up in the breakdown lane.

Sometimes they smash into him and he flails spasticly, as if tased, looking to the ref as the ball rolls away.

This is Ky in all his epic beauty.

There is a disconnect between what Ky believes himself to be and what Ky actually is. This used to bother me. I have decided to embrace it.

Ky sees himself as a point guard, a facilitator, a calming influence, an athletic demon charging hard to the rim, an assassin burying shots in crunch time, a smart guy always looking to draw calls.

In actuality he is a combo swingman who can pass well, a guy with a shaky handle, a guy who has worked hard to develop a competent standstill jumper, a way below average athlete who should probably get a work-up for some sort of bone and joint stiffness condition, a sneaky good defender, a guy with good size but below average talent getting by on guts, effort and ego.

The clash between self-belief and reality is what is so fantastic about his new roll as captain. Captain Ky LOVES this role. He is always coaching and encouraging, trying to lead even in games (like Georgia) where he is mostly riding the bench.

A guy whose biggest problem (most of us believe) is his decision making is telling everybody else what decisions need to be made. And it kinda WORKS!

The only thing better would be if Alandise took over as coach.

It’s kinda like when I heard Todd Day had gotten into coaching. I LOVED me some Todd Day but it seemed weird that a guy who took a swing at LARRY FREAKIN’ JOHNSON, was kicked out of the Miami Heat locker room for being team poison, and is considered by many to be the most disliked Celtic in history (maybe not a bad thing considering Celtics fans embrace M.L. Carr and Jerry Sichting and their GM once BIT A GUY in an on court fight) wants to take on the role of someone who gets tormented by players JUST LIKE HIMSELF.

But I have decided it isn’t weird at all. It’s natural. It’s good. I don’t know why. It just IS.

Maybe it’s because I think self-awareness has become overrated in today’s world. Too many people know their role nowadays. Too many people just accept their own ceiling. Maybe we need more folks wildly trying to be what they can never be. Maybe settling for mediocrity isn’t the best thing – even when you ARE mediocre.

I have decided to love Ky. I will just sit back and enjoy his weirdness, his unique-ness. His flailing grasp at greatness is more than I have ever accomplished. It should be celebrated.

Straddle that H-bomb Ky. Wave your hat like Slim Pickens and yell “Yee-Haw” as you fly towards the Earth."

-SeattleHog

This post was edited on 4/14/15 at 10:06 am